Book Review: God, Science, and Reason: Finding the Light of God Amidst the Darkness of Atheism and Dogmatismby Rich Deem

Book Review

Synopsis:
Taking on the new atheists.Summary: God, Science, and Reason
is an appeal to reason from a Christian perspective. Michael Bunner shows how the new atheists fail to evaluate evidence with an unbiased approach, but assume the absence of the supernatural through scientific naturalism and philosophical materialism.

Rating:

Rich Deem

Introduction

God, Science, and Reason
is a scientific and philosophical examination of the creation as an apologetic
for the existence of God. Michael Bunner wrote the book in response to
a growing concern for young people who were leaving the Church after high school. The project
initially began as an adult Sunday School class designed to teach parents (and
grandparents) how to respond to the messages of the many New Atheist books that
had been on the best seller list during the previous 2-3 years. A common lament of
those parents was that, after their children went off to college, they were
exposed to atheist professors, and read those books, which resulted in them distancing
themselves from their faith.

God, Science, and Reason
is organized into 4 sub-books, 3 of which are directed at different groups
of individuals and the fourth on the meaning of miracles.

Message to Young Adults who are Skeptical about God

The first "book" is an appeal to young adults to integrate science and
philosophy as a way to find an intellectually satisfying Christian faith
apart from the perceived faults of Christians. Most Christian youth leave
the Church because Christians are perceived to be judgmental and
Christianity fails to meet their spiritual needs. Many youth see Christians
as "old fashioned" and unable to address current issues that affect society,
including social and scientific challenges. Dogmatic young earth Christians
say that science is an enemy of the faith and that the Bible says the earth
is 6,000 years old. So, youth to conclude "that if the adults at your church
were so wrong about the basic facts of science, then they may be just as
wrong about the other things they were telling you, like Jesus being the
human face of God, or Jesus overcoming physical death, or Jesus forgiving
your sins and healing your consciousness." Regarding natural evil, Bunner
argues that the natural framework that produces a habitable earth can also
randomly produces catastrophic natural events, whose negative effects are
often intensified by poor human choices. Bunner ends the first book with an
apologetic for Jesus as God in human flesh.

Message to the "New Atheists"

The second "book" is a retort to new atheists. Bunner shows the logical
inconsistencies of the new atheists and their misuse of science to support
their beliefs. The presupposition of materialistic naturalism precludes the
existence of the supernatural, hence "confirming" that God does not exist.
Bunner tells the new atheists, "You confuse methodological naturalism, which is an awkward way of saying
science, with metaphysical naturalism, which is an awkward way of saying
atheism." In this "book," Bunner takes on the new God of atheism
(nothingness), their inability to explain the origin of information, the
origin of life, the origin of consciousness, and the origin of morality.

Message to Dogmatic Christians

In his usual "no holds barred" approach, Bunner takes on the dogmatic
(i.e., young earth) Christians who put stumbling blocks in the way of those
who long for salvation and spiritual meaning in life. He says, "You have made belief in a 6,500 year old earth a mandatory test for
Christian orthodoxy, placing an unnecessary, and often insurmountable,
obstacle in the path of those who are looking for and in need of Godís gifts
of redemption and restoration." Bunner points out that young earth
creationism was pretty much dead until 1961, when John Morris published
The Genesis Flood. The revival of young earth creationism brought forth
"creation science," which has been used recently to destroy the credibility
of Christians.

The Lessons of God through the Miracles of Jesus

We all recognize that the miracles of Jesus were used to establish His claim
of deity. However, the miracles of Jesus were also spiritual lessons, much
like His numerous parables. The fourth and final "book" of God, Science, and Reason
examines the spiritual teachings of Jesus through His healing, feeding, and
resurrection miracles. Although these miracles fulfilled Old Testament
prophecies regarding the Messiah, they provide much deeper spiritual lessons
for us today.

Conclusions

Michael Bunner has written a no-holds-barred apologetic for science and the
Bible, intended for youth, who describe themselves as spiritual, but want
nothing to do with contemporary Christianity. The book is a good resource for
Christian youth and their parents, but its confrontational approach would
probably not be appreciated by either atheists or young earth creationists.